Defense Attorney for a Day
by AriatheAlpha
Summary: [ONE-SHOT] We saw in Trials and Tribulations that Edgeworth had a talk with Phoenix at the hospital before arriving at the detention center, but how exactly did that "talk" go? In this fic I'm going to focus on a (slightly goofy) conversation at the hospital, as well as experiment writing about something I've recently become a fan of; the ace attorney series. Hope you enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

**Hey! This is just a little something I decided to write after finishing the Trials and Tribulations game. It's kind of long, but enjoy I guess!**

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It had been at least 12 hours until Phoenix fell into the raging Eagle River, blacked out and woke up the hospital, covered in bruises and with a terrible cold. Too bad they didn't have Cold Killer X at this clinic. Oh, yes. The infamous Hotti Clinic. Although it was no longer called that due to a little "incident" that gave the place a bad name. Phoenix himself was the defense attorney in that case. It was definitely after 11:00 pm, but Phoenix didn't care. The events in Hazakura temple that eventually led him to that hospital bed had reminded him of something.

He borrowed a small computer from someone at the hospital and decided to search the records of the courtroom online for a specific case. The defense attorney? Mia Fey, Phoenix's mentor. Mia's first case. According to her (she briefly spoke about this to Phoenix once) the experience scarred her so much that she wasn't able to return to the courtroom for one year. And it was on that year, on her second case, that it was young 21-year-old Phoenix's turn to sit at the defendant's chair. But the case itself wasn't the most interesting thing, but rather the location. The crime took place at "Dusky Bridge", located practically in the middle of nowhere. A fierce, raging river ran below it. _Eagle River_. It was said that bodies that fell into the river were very rarely found. How peculiar. Because Phoenix happened to fall into a river called _Eagle River_ , above a broken bridge called _Dusky Bridge._ Indeed, it was the same place where Mia's case had taken place, the case that left such a wound in her soul that she was unable to return to the courtroom until much later. And as Phoenix was scrolling through the pages she typed herself, he could see why.

The defendant, Terry Fawles, committed suicide by drinking a deadly poison from a bottle, the same bottle that nearly killed Phoenix in that case one year later. If Fawles hadn't drunk from that bottle, it was very likely that Phoenix would be the one in a coffin. In a way, Terry Fawles saved him. But in order for one to be saved, the other had to die. That thought made Phoenix feel guilty of something that was clearly never his fault.

As he kept scrolling through the notes, it occurred to him that Mia never once mentioned the prosecutor in that case. She mentioned a certain lawyer that was with her that day, Diego Armando, but not the prosecutor. If Mia was scarred so deeply, imagine the prosecutor. They must have gone through the same thing, seen everything Mia saw. Even a prosecutor couldn't possibly stand still and gawk at the _injustice_ of this case.

He was interrupted when the door to his room opened about 5 millimeters. A batch of short purple hair and a lab coat with a stethoscope could be seen faintly.

"…Mr. Wright? Hmm, you've got a visitor, hmm, yes…"

Phoenix tilted his head a bit. "A visitor…? At this time of the night?"

The doctor (Phoenix had forgotten his name because he somehow kept changing it) nodded about 30 times per second.

"Hmm, yes… they said it was urgent, hmm… had to talk to you, hmm, yes…"

Phoenix was a bit curious as to who this visitor was.

"Um, ok… then let them in, I guess…"

The doctor chuckled a bit to himself and left down the corridor while chanting "Hmm, yes" all of the way. Phoenix, still with the computer on his lap, stared expectantly at the ajar door.

"Uh… you can come in now. I won't bite. Heh… Heh…"

Phoenix mentally face palmed at his possibly cheesiest way to invite someone in ever.

Suddenly, he heard a grunt in the corridor in response. A familiar voice spoke in a sarcastic tone.

"Well, don't worry, Wright. I wasn't expecting you to "bite" anyway, but who knows when it comes to you?"

The familiar man in the dark red suit and white cravat opened the door and stepped right in.

Phoenix's eyes widened. "E-E-EDGEWORTH!?"

With the light from the corridor, it was easier to see him now. Edgeworth was carrying a small briefcase with him as he walked to the corner of the room, flipped the switch to turn the corner lights on, then walked back to the door and closed it, still leaving light from the corner so they wouldn't be completely in the dark.

Phoenix was nothing short of flabbergasted. "W-what are you doing here?"

Edgeworth grabbed a chair from the corner and sat across from Phoenix's bed.

"Well, that's a great warm welcome from someone I haven't seen in about a year." He set his briefcase down near his feet, then bent forward a bit while looking at Phoenix, waiting for a response.

Phoenix appeared to calm down a bit. He closed the laptop and put it beside him. "…Why are you here? Weren't you studying some judicial system abroad?"

Edgeworth nodded once. "Indeed I was, until last night I received a most pleasing call from Larry, and he said that "Elise" was in danger, and Maya was in danger, and everyone was in danger, because reasons. Oh, he also said that you happened to waltz into a bridge, fell off and were about to DIE. But as soon as I walked in here, I see you clearly alive and well. You have no idea the sort of trouble I had to go through to get to this country in one day. I had to charter a private jet! I know I've won my share of cases but I don't have that kind of money, but here I am, all because that stupid moron of a friend told me…"

Well, someone appears to have had a very bad day.

As Edgeworth continued to rant, Phoenix was attentively trying to process everything he was saying, as he didn't understand most of it. But he didn't need to, because "I received a phone call from Larry" was practically the source of anyone's problems. He sort of reminded Phoenix of Wendy Oldbag for a moment. All this was giving him a head-ache…

He placed a hand on his forehead and grunted, squeezing his eyes shut. Edgeworth then returned from his trip to complaint-land. "And now I have to come here at… Wright? Are you ok?"

Phoenix opened one eye to look back at Edgeworth. "Yeah… I'm ok, it's just… stupid head-ache. Hey Edgeworth, can you fetch the plastic bottle with pills on the counter over there? I guess I forgot to take the darn pills…"

Edgeworth obliged, quickly finding the lone bottle on the counter and handing it over to Phoenix. Phoenix opened the lid, took a pill and grabbed the glass of water near him. After swallowing the pill, Phoenix made a look of disgust. "…Ugh… I hate being sick… Can't wait till I get out of here…"

Edgeworth returned to his place at the chair. He cocked his eyebrow. "Well, I would say "being sick" is the least of what could have happened to you. You're lucky to be alive, you know. You shouldn't have jumped off a bridge like that. If you weren't so lucky, it would most likely be your corpse that I would find here instead of you. That is, if they ever found it."

Phoenix frowned and felt a personal offense to Edgeworth's 'worried parent' act. "Thanks, mom."

Edgeworth frowned back, and Phoenix admitted to himself that his frown was even scarier.

Edgeworth crossed his arms and huffed. "Why DID you even jump off that bridge anyway?"

"Excuse me, but I never planned to jump off any bridge. The thing just snapped apart. And as for why I crossed the bridge, well it's because Maya was still at the other side."

That shut Edgeworth up. Maya was still stuck at the other side of the bridge? One thing he HAD managed to get from Larry was a map of the surrounding area. If Maya was stuck in the Inner Temple, there is no other way for her to get out aside from the bridge. He didn't have a chance to actually find out more about it, because he had planned to ask Phoenix himself.

"So… you tried to cross a burning bridge to save her?"

Phoenix scratched the back of his head. "Well… yeah, although the 'the bridge could fall apart' thought didn't really pass through my head then… I wasn't thinking rationally that day."

Edgeworth cocked an eyebrow and stared at his feet. "…Or any day, for that matter…"

"I heard that."

Edgeworth turned to look at Phoenix. His arms were crossed and he was staring at Edgeworth expectantly.

 _Well, seems he heard me. I have no regrets though,_ thought Edgeworth.

Phoenix suddenly lit up like a lightbulb. "That reminds me… what happened to Maya? The last thing I remember was falling off the bridge and Larry screaming my name. Hey Edgeworth, you have your friends-in-the-police thing, right? Did they tell you anything?"

Edgeworth shook his head. "I'm sorry Wright, but right now I'm as in the dark as you are. I practically just arrived. You're the first person I came to see."

"…Really?"

Edgeworth gritted his teeth in what seemed like embarrassment to Phoenix. "N-now don't get me wrong! I was under the impression that you were about to die!"

Phoenix half-grinned. "Come on, Edgeworth. You should know I don't die that easily."

Edgeworth crossed his arms and closed his eyes in thought. "The only thing I should know is to never believe anything Larry says. Ever." He then opened his eyes, like he remembered something. "Actually, there is one thing I probably should believe. On the phone, Larry said there was some trial happening the day after tomorrow and the defendant is a nun named Iris."

Upon hearing that name, Phoenix shrank back into the bed a bit. Edgeworth, ever perceptive, noticed his behaviour. "…Did I say something wrong?"

Phoenix shook his head. "No, it's just… well, maybe I should explain to you from the beginning."

Phoenix explained to Edgeworth the reason why he had gone to Hazakura temple with Maya and Pearl, the training course, how cold it was, how he woke up suddenly to discover there was a murder, all the way until he fell off the bridge.

Edgeworth lifted up his hands in motion for him to slow down. "Wait, wait. Let me see if I got this straight. The victim's name is Elise Deauxnim, correct?"Phoenix nodded. "And the ones who found the body were you and the head nun? And the main suspect is the other nun, Iris."

"…Yes."

Edgeworth stared intently at Phoenix. _There_ _'_ _s something he_ _'_ _s not telling me, and I_ _'_ _m sure it_ _'_ _s about this_ _'_ _Iris_ _'_ _._

Edgeworth sat up straight and turned his attention to the wall.

"Wright… if I'm going to help you, you'll have to tell me everything."

Phoenix was surprised Edgeworth was going to help him the first place.

"But I just did, I told you everything before I fell off that bridge."

Edgeworth turned to look back at Phoenix.

"I've noticed how you behaved while you were explaining about Iris. So tell me, what is it? What is it about her that makes you so uneasy?"

Phoenix remained silent.

Edgeworth, seeing that Phoenix wasn't going to answer, decided to guess.

"Did you do something dumb and make her mad?"

Phoenix shook his head. Not that he remembered, anyway…

"Hmm… did you hear something… 'strange' about her, or something?"

"Uh, no…"

 _Then what is it?!_ All of a sudden, a thought occurred to Edgeworth that should have been obvious.

"Oh, I understand. You like-"

"NO! Er, I mean… no, that's… not it." Phoenix started to fiddle. "…Can I tell you something?"

Edgeworth crossed his arms. "Well sure, I suppose."

Phoenix looked straight into Edgeworth's eyes, but they were so small and dark that it was difficult to tell where his pupils began. "Iris… I've seen her before, but it couldn't possibly be. She… reminds me of my girlfriend, back at university. And when I say she reminds me, I mean she looks exactly like her. But … Dolly- er, my girlfriend was put in jail after a trial. She was found guilty of murder and theft and… she was executed last month…"

Edgeworth's eyes widened in shock. How could Wright tell him this with a straight face?

"I… I see. I'm sorry."

Phoenix shook his head and stared at the floor. "No, it's alright. The past is in the past now, I guess…" He turned back to Edgeworth. "That's the real reason I decided to go to the temple and why she was making me nervous. And now she's the prime suspect in the murder that happened just now. And since I'm here, I can't defend her. She could be found guilty. I'm stuck here, and I can't do anything. And Maya… Maya is still stuck in that cave, all alone in that cold. I've heard about that training cave. That area often has tremors, and if one hits the cave just right, it could be a cave-in!"

"Wright-"

"And Maya is still locked in there! T-this... It's _all my fault_! There could be a tremor happening right now, and because of me the bridge is gone, and Maya could very much be-"

"Wright!"

Phoenix cringed a bit and slowly turned to look at Edgeworth.

Edgeworth sighed. "I know things must be tough for you right now, but don't blame yourself for everything. Seriously! Do I have to remind you that you and I are both human and we all make mistakes? The least you can do is try to do something about them. Blaming yourself is always a waste of time." Edgeworth half-smiled, something Phoenix rarely saw him do. "Come on, Wright. Where is your usual optimistic self?"

Phoenix stared at his hands, reflecting on what Edgeworth just told him. _Ok, do something about my mistakes, but what can I do?_

"You said I should try to do something, but what can I do? I'm stuck here until at least three days, and Iris's trial is the day after tomorrow. I can't think of any lawyer that would possibly want to defend her. From what I heard so far, her case is airtight. At this point, only a prosecutor would defend her, huh?"

… _Wait a minute._

Edgeworth cocked an eyebrow. "Was that a joke? Because I don't get what is so funny about it."

Phoenix sat up straight.

"Edgeworth, it's true that no lawyer would defend her, but I think I just thought of someone who can."

Edgeworth leaned forward on his chair and propped himself up on his elbows.

"Oh? And who is that?"

Phoenix grinned the widest he had ever grinned this whole conversation.

"YOU!"

Edgeworth almost fell off his chair. Partly in how **loud** Phoenix shouted that last part, and partly because of what he was _suggesting_.

Edgeworth cleared his throat. "E-Excuse me? Are you sure you didn't have too many of those head-ache pills?"

Phoenix placed his hands on his hips. "Nope!"

"...Are you sure of anything at all...?..."

Phoenix looked as if he won the lottery. Edgeworth pinched the brim of his nose. "He's worse than I thought… I'm still dreaming. Yes, that's it. This is nothing more than a terrible nightm-"

"I'm serious."

Edgeworth looked up at him, and indeed saw a much more serious expression on Phoenix's face.

"Edgeworth, I don't know anyone else that could find the truth behind this case. It's not that hard, you've seen me do it in court so many times. Damn, even the Tigre guy could fool the judge and bailiffs into believing he was me with only a blue suit and a paper badge."

Edgeworth blinked. _...I'll pretend I didn't just hear that._

He scratched the back of his head. "Ok listen, Wright. As much as I would be willing to help, I think you should understand that I am a PROSECUTOR and not a LAWYER. The _prosecutor_ guy is me. The _lawyer_ guy is you."

Phoenix crossed his arms. "Don't talk to me like I'm Larry. I'm quite sure I knew that already." A saddened expression took over Phoenix's face. "Please, Edgeworth. If there is any other lawyer out there who would actually defend her, we'll never find the truth. You told me yourself, a year ago. In a trial, what's important isn't to win. It's the truth. That is what the law is, and why prosecutors and lawyers exist. You're the only one I know who would get to the bottom of this. Find the truth. You're the only one I can count on."

Edgeworth looked into Phoenix's pleading eyes. In truth, if Edgeworth was ever in a similar trouble, it was Wright he would think of calling first, but of course he'd never tell him that.

Phoenix stared down at his hands again. This seemed to be a strange mania of his. "If only I could get out of this bed…" He coughed a bit. "… It's hopeless. I can't do anything…" Phoenix covered his face with his hands, as if acknowledging that this was where it would end.

Edgeworth had to think of a way to cheer him up. It then occurred to him that there was only one way. _I will so hate myself for this tomorrow..._ He got up from his chair, slowly walked over to Phoenix and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

Phoenix froze and carefully looked up at Edgeworth. This was the closest thing to comforting him like a normal person he had ever done. The prosecutor sighed. "I can't believe I'm saying this… but maybe playing defense attorney for a day might be fun."

Phoenix's face lit up like a kid on christmas. "Y-you mean… You'll do it!?"

Edgeworth half-smiled again, and Phoenix was surprised already at how much he had smiled in one day.

"Yes, I'll do it. And frankly, this will be a new entry to my book of 'Craziest things I ever had to do because of Wright'."

Phoenix chuckled, and Edgeworth removed his hand from his shoulder.

Phoenix then reached below his bed, pulled out a medium-sized back-pack and placed in on his bed. He took out three objects, but Edgeworth couldn't really make out what they were because of the low light.

"Well, if you're going to investigate, I can't really let you go empty-handed. Even before the murder, I did my homework too."

Phoenix grabbed one of the three objects and handed one to Edgeworth.

"A… notebook?"

Phoenix nodded. "Well, my organizer. It has all my notes that I took of Hazakura temple and the surrounding area."

Edgeworth decided to take a look inside. It seemed that Wright has had this book for quite some time, since the leather cover was slightly ripped and the pages were stiff. He tried to read the entries, however Phoenix's handwriting was so messy that he almost needed to squint to make out whether it was an 'm' or 'n'.

"…This is the messiest thing I've ever…"

Phoenix huffed. "Gee, thanks Edgeworth. I appreciate your concern for my calligraphy."

Edgeworth realized that, once again, he had accidentally said that aloud. _I think I won_ _'_ _t say anything aloud ever again,_ thought Edgeworth.

Phoenix then reached to grab another item. He held it in his right hand. "This… is something I've used to tell when people are lying or hiding secrets from me. It's a Magatama. It lets you see the secrets in people's hearts."

… _just when I thought that was enough nonsense talk for one day_ , thought Edgeworth.

Phoenix held up a shiny green stone that looked like a number '9'. Edgeworth picked it up from his hands and examined it more closely.

"I can… see into people's hearts with this?"

Phoenix nodded. "You'll see the psyche-locks when someone is hiding something."

 _What? 'Psycholocks'? This guy is making less and less sense every time..._

Finally, Phoenix reached for his third item. "There's one more thing you need."

He gripped the small object in his right hand tightly. Edgeworth could see a metallic glint coming from it occasionally.

"Even if you show up in court, they won't let you in unless you have proof you're an attorney."

Phoenix looked up at Edgeworth and handed him a small badge. His attorney's badge.

"Y-your badge, Wright?"

Phoenix grinned and crossed his arms. "Well, how else are you going to get in? Don't worry. Everything will be fine. If there's anyone who can do it, it's you."

Edgeworth stared at the little badge. It strongly resembled those little cookies he used to take and share with Wright and Larry during recess at school. At the back, there was a number inscribed, which would ensure there was a way of recovering it if Wright ever lost it. Edgeworth assumed that, knowing Wright, it was a matter of time before he did. He put the small badge in his chest pocket.

"Thank you, Wright."

" _I_ should thank _you_. For doing all this." He grinned at Edgeworth yet again, and something told him that he would keep seeing that grin as long as Wright still had it in him.

Edgeworth cleared his throat. "I guess I should be going now. But before I do, may I ask you what you were searching in that laptop at 11 at night?"

Phoenix saw no problem in just telling him. "Well, I found something interesting. A connection between this case and one of Mia's first cases."

 _Mia? Ah yes, now I remember_ _…_

"'Mia'? You mean your late mentor, Mia Fey?"

Phoenix nodded. "Apparently both the crime just now and the one 5 years ago happened in the area of Dusky Bridge near the Eagle River. Mia was really traumatized after that first trial, and I get why… it had to do with the defendant who committed suicide just before he could be proven innocent. Terry Fawles, I think."

Upon hearing that name, Edgeworth tensed up a bit.

"I-it must have been terrible, indeed…"

Phoenix looked questioningly at him. He then remembered one more thing about the peculiar case.

"Oh, and there's something really strange. Mia wrote about about everything, even the decor on the walls of the room, except for the prosecutor's name. I know it was a guy, because she kept using 'he', but there isn't anything she wrote about his name."

Edgeworth went back to his chair to fetch his briefcase. "Maybe she forgot his name…?"

"I don't think so. It kind of sticks when you have to keep addressing the prosecution as Mr. or Ms. Whatever the whole time. Weird… but I guess I'll save that mystery for another day."

Briefcase in hand, Edgeworth started for the door.

"Well, anyway, it's time for me to go. I need to check in at the hotel before tomorrow."

As Edgeworth grabbed the door handle, Phoenix called him one last time.

"…Edgeworth?"

Edgeworth looked back at Phoenix.

"Really, I'm grateful for what you're doing for me. Thank you… Miles."

Edgeworth smiled slightly. "Likewise."

He stepped out of the room and closed the door. Phoenix was left alone to his thoughts, and his little laptop. He decided to resume his search. However, instead of searching for Mia's notes, he searched the general court's library website for records on the Terry Fawles case.

When searching for defendant names, he kept scrolling until he finally found it.

'FAWLES, Terry'.

He clicked it and it took him to a resume of how the case had gone. At the beginning of the page, he searched the prosecutor's name. What he found surely was the name he was least expecting.

'DEFENDANT: Fawles, Terry. DEFENSE: Fey, Mia. PROSECUTION: Edgeworth, Miles'

* * *

While in a Taxi on his way to the hotel, Edgeworth decided to take another look at Phoenix's organizer to keep him distracted _._ As he went through the pages, there was something he _could_ read a bit easier.

'XX day of the XX month of the XXXX year. "DL-6 Incident notes"'.

Edgeworth looked through the pages. The writing was a bit more clear here. At some parts Phoenix had written notes regarding evidence, and at others, he would write some of his thoughts. One entry caught his attention.

" _It_ _'_ _s the third_ _day of the trial. I_ _'_ _m sure Von Karma is going to bring up DL-6, but he took all the evidence with him. That is, except the bullet. But I don_ _'_ _t care. I know Edgeworth is innocent, and I_ _'_ _m sure there is a way to prove that. Maybe I can_ _'_ _t see it now, but I will give it the very best I can do. It_ _'_ _s true that I've only been in 3 trials, and Edgeworth said I was only lucky that I won all three. Also, Von Karma never lost a case in over 40 years. But again, I don_ _'_ _t care. If he hasn't lost for 40 years, then I guess I_ _'_ _ll have to be the first one he looses to. No matter what, I won_ _'_ _t let Edgeworth be declared guilty for something he didn't do. He trusts me, and I have to make sure I_ _'_ _m worthy of that trust. I don't care what kind of dirty trick Von Karma has up his sleeve, I won_ _'_ _t let him convict Edgeworth. Even if I_ _'_ _m on my own this time, I won_ _'_ _t back down. I_ _'_ _ll finish what has stood unfinished for 15 years and free Edgeworth of his guilt. This is my chance to pay him back for what he said to me all those years ago. - Phoenix Wright_ _"_

Edgeworth thought back to that trial. When it was his turn to sit at the defendant's chair himself.

Wright had really changed after 3 years. Although at the time he was only a novice with barely 3 trials up his sleeve, his determination and undying faith in his clients was and still is why many people wouldn't think twice of choosing Phoenix Wright as their defense attorney. Edgeworth remembered the moment he finally felt free from the nightmares and guilt that had haunted him for 15 years. He could finally be content with himself again. All thanks to the one man who had the courage to take his lost case and turn the whole thing around, and to top it off, he won.

 _Wright, you better keep being that optimistic goody-two-shoes to the extreme attorney for the rest of your days. If you ever lose that, I_ _'_ _ll be there to snap you out of it faster than you can say 'Objection'._

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 **So, did you like it? This is the final version, after hours and hours of polishing this so it would look its best. Maybe if I feel inspired enough I might write another one for ace attorney. Be sure to check out my other fics!... not that I have so many right now anyway.**


	2. Chapter 2

**If you enjoyed this little thing I wrote, be sure to leave a review! Please! I want to know how much my writing has improved. Thank you, Aria the Alpha, signing out.**


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